I am still not completely sure of the difference.
Anyway, what I wanted to put out there and believe me I am looking for both opinions and facts.
I've heard some comments from both sides of the fence during my years in the business.
I think its a great thing to try to get acredidated or certified because it makes the department better. Meaning that, as an officer or above, it really helps that someone has already put a plan together that can guide me. I've been where I had to make decisions based on nothing more than what I had at the time for information. It would have been really helpful, especially in an emergency to have a grasp on what someone (who had time to think it out) came up with.
I am looking to make policy to make life miserable. I am looking to make the job as comprehensible as possible.
My firt department had an old policy manual(1 for all). Another chief came in and tossed that out and gave us one that was a mix of different policies from different places which wasn't very good. Now I am at a department that will allow me to work on the 30 policies that do exist and try to make sense of them as well as create more (policies that will answer some unanswered questions). I am in no way trying to come up with policies for the sake of filling a book. However, I've learned that to get accredidated a department needs a lot of SOPs.
Anyway, I was wondering even if my current department never gets recognized by some award (not really my goal), does it matter. Is having a good policy manual better than none at all or always flying by the seat of your pants...
Please let me know your thoughts. Right now I am on the threshold of what could be a project that will take some time (possibly years) but right now feel excited and motivated to do it. I don' tknow how long that will last.
Thanks...
Anyway, what I wanted to put out there and believe me I am looking for both opinions and facts.
I've heard some comments from both sides of the fence during my years in the business.
I think its a great thing to try to get acredidated or certified because it makes the department better. Meaning that, as an officer or above, it really helps that someone has already put a plan together that can guide me. I've been where I had to make decisions based on nothing more than what I had at the time for information. It would have been really helpful, especially in an emergency to have a grasp on what someone (who had time to think it out) came up with.
I am looking to make policy to make life miserable. I am looking to make the job as comprehensible as possible.
My firt department had an old policy manual(1 for all). Another chief came in and tossed that out and gave us one that was a mix of different policies from different places which wasn't very good. Now I am at a department that will allow me to work on the 30 policies that do exist and try to make sense of them as well as create more (policies that will answer some unanswered questions). I am in no way trying to come up with policies for the sake of filling a book. However, I've learned that to get accredidated a department needs a lot of SOPs.
Anyway, I was wondering even if my current department never gets recognized by some award (not really my goal), does it matter. Is having a good policy manual better than none at all or always flying by the seat of your pants...
Please let me know your thoughts. Right now I am on the threshold of what could be a project that will take some time (possibly years) but right now feel excited and motivated to do it. I don' tknow how long that will last.
Thanks...